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Walker Hayes shares his battle with addiction and the pain of losing a child in new album, “Sober Thoughts”
Country singer Walker Hayes is opening up about his past battles with alcoholism that almost cost him his music career with his latest album, “Sober Thoughts.”
Three years ago, Hayes burst onto the music scene with “Fancy Like,” a song that became a sensation and established his presence in the country music world. Today, he returns with a collection of songs that delve deeper into his life experiences, including his struggles with addiction and the heartbreak of losing a child.
In the early days of his career, he and his high school sweetheart, Laney, moved to Nashville to chase his dream of becoming a songwriter. However, the path was plagued with challenges.
“Life’s kicked us around and we’ve also made it through some really tough stuff,” he said,
After a decade, Hayes’ music career was stalling. He was working the swing shift at Costco to support his growing family. He turned to alcohol, saying he was drinking “all day, every day.”
“I mean, it had, it had come to an embarrassing point but I had a handle of vodka in my Honda Accord at all times. And it went in every beverage,” he said.
Hayes’ struggle persisted until he eventually acknowledged he was an alcoholic.
“I woke up, and physically, I’ve never felt like this before,” Hayes said. “It wasn’t even a hangover. It just felt like if I start again today and do this, I might die.”
After this realization, Hayes pursued sobriety, and his life began to improve.
However, as his career was gaining momentum in 2018, he and his wife faced an unimaginable tragedy.
Laney almost died while delivering their seventh child, Oakleigh, who was stillborn at full-term. After Oakleigh’s funeral — and three years sober — Hayes drove to a bar.
“Got down there and my wallet wasn’t in my door,” he said. “So I drove back home. First thing I see when I walk back into my house is Laney in the dark living room, just sitting in the dark, staring into the wall, by herself. And my grief and anger immediately turned to shame. My favorite person on Earth is all by herself.”
That’s when he says his priorities quickly shifted, and in clinging to his family, Hayes’ career finally took off.
“I was self-absorbed and I wanted power. I wanted success. And so the lens changed when we lost Oakleigh and I began to cling to the things that matter, and one thing that really matters to me is my kids,” said Hayes.
Hayes’ career witnessed a resurgence in 2021, when a TikTok dance created by his daughter Lela to “Fancy Like” went viral, reintroducing his music to a wider audience.
“I was like, oh, we got 6,000, you know, 6,000 people like it,” Hayes recalled. “And my daughter goes, ‘Dad, that’s 600,000.'”
This newfound success was a beacon of light for Hayes and his family, showing how personal expression through music could foster connection and healing.
Now, with “Sober Thoughts,” Hayes is more candid than ever about his life’s complexities.
“I don’t know what the future holds,” he said. “And the fact that life, it ends. And if we all really got to see that from, from the front row, it would change our daily lives. We would see clearly what matters.”
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions
Live from Lincoln Center in New York, the 77th annual Tony Awards will air tonight. Broadway (and Hollywood) favorites like Rachel McAdams, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Hudson, Jim Parsons, Daniel Radcliffe and Jesse Tyler Ferguson are all scheduled to attend.
Keep reading to learn how and when to watch the 2024 Tony Awards tonight.
NOTE: CBS Essentials, CBS and Paramount+ are all subsidiaries of Paramount.
How and when to watch the 2024 Tony Awards with cable
The 2024 Tony Awards will air on Sunday, June 16, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT). The three-hour broadcast will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ with Showtime, as well as on the platforms featured below.
How to watch the 2024 Tony Awards without cable
If you’ve given up your cable subscription, or your cable provider doesn’t include CBS, you can subscribe to one of the streaming or live TV platforms featured below.
How to watch the 2024 Tony Awards: Paramount+ with Showtime
Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
CBS will host this year’s Tony Awards, which means Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers can stream the show live.
The streamer offers access to all CBS-aired award shows and sports locally and nationally televised on CBS on its Paramount + with Showtime tier. In addition, you can watch top-tier soccer like the Champions League live and SEC college football games, plus popular shows such as “Survivor” and “NCIS.”
A subscription to Paramount+ with Showtime is $11.99 per month. The streamer offers a seven-day free trial. (You won’t be able to stream the Tony Awards live with a Paramount+ Essential subscription.)
Stream the 2024 Tony Awards: Paramount + with Showtime free on Amazon Prime Video
Paramount+ content, including the Tony Awards, is available to stream on Amazon Prime via a Paramount+ on Prime Video add-on subscription. Prime Video also carries some of the best sports documentaries, including “Kelce,” which chronicles former Philadelphia Eagles star Jason Kelce’s last season in the league.
Amazon is offering a seven-day free trial of Paramount+ with Showtime. Tap the button below to start your trial and start streaming now for free. After the free trial period ends, a subscription to the Paramount+ with Showtime tier is $11.99 per month.
Watch the Tony Awards free with Fubo
If you’re new to streaming content, you should know about Fubo. Fubo is a live TV streaming service that offers access to network and cable-aired sports, award shows and original content, plus your local TV affiliates, hundreds of cable TV channels and 1,000 hours of cloud DVR storage. Another great reason to love Fubo is its lookback feature, which lets you watch sporting events up to 72 hours after they air live.
Start watching the Tony Awards on Fubo and also get access to network-aired NFL next season, NBA and MLB games by starting a seven-day free trial of Fubo. You can begin watching immediately on your TV, phone, tablet or computer. After your free trial, Fubo starts at $80 per month for the Pro tier, which includes over 180 channels.
What you’ll get with Fubo Pro Tier:
- There are no contracts with Fubo — you can cancel at any time.
- The Pro tier includes over 180 channels, so there’s something for everyone to watch.
- Fubo includes most of the channels you’ll need to watch college and pro sports, including CBS.
- In addition to March Madness, Fubo offers NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS and international soccer games.
- All Fubo tiers come with 1,000 hours of cloud-based DVR recording.
- Stream on your TV, phone and mobile devices.
Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle: The one way to stream every March Madness game
You can watch the 2024 Tony Awards, and all network-aired programming, with the Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle. The bundle features 95 channels, including ESPN, ABC and CBS, and includes ESPN+, so you’ll be able to watch your favorite network shows and sports airing on network TV. Unlimited DVR storage is also included. Watch content on every network with Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle.
Hulu + Live TV comes bundled with ESPN+ and Disney+. It’s priced at $77.
Watch the Tony Awards live with a digital HDTV antenna
Amazon
You can also watch tonight’s show on TV with an affordable indoor antenna, which pulls in local over-the-air HDTV channels such as CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, PBS, Univision and more. Here’s the kicker: There’s no monthly charge.
For anyone living in a partially blocked-off area (those near mountains or first-floor apartments), a digital TV antenna may not pick up a good signal — or any signal at all. But for many homes, a digital TV antenna provides a seriously inexpensive way to watch network TV without paying a cable company. Indoor TV antennas can also provide some much-needed TV backup if a storm knocks out your cable.
This ultra-thin, multi-directional digital antenna with a 65-mile range can receive hundreds of HD TV channels, including ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox, and Univision and can filter out cellular and FM signals. It delivers a high-quality picture in 1080p HDTV, top-tier sound and features a 12-foot digital coax cable.
Who is hosting the 2024 Tony Awards?
Academy Award winner and Tony Award nominee Ariana DeBose returns as host of tonight’s show, her third time hosting the Tony Awards.
Who is nominated for a Tony Award this year?
Below is a list of the nominees for the 2024 Tony Awards.
Best Play
- “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”
- “Mary Jane”
- “Mother Play”
- “Prayer for the French Republic”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Musical
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Illinoise”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Suffs”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Revival of a Play
- “Appropriate”
- “An Enemy of the People”
- “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
Best Revival of a Musical
- “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
- “Gutenberg! The Musical!”
- “Merrily We Roll Along”
- “The Who’s Tommy”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
- Betsy Aidem, “Prayer for the French Republic”
- Jessica Lange, “Mother Play”
- Rachel McAdams, “Mary Jane”
- Sarah Paulson, “Appropriate”
- Amy Ryan, “Doubt: A Parable”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
- William Jackson Harper, “Uncle Vanya”
- Leslie Odom Jr., “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
- Liev Schreiber, “Doubt: A Parable”
- Jeremy Strong, “An Enemy of the People”
- Michael Stuhlbarg, “Patriots”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
- Eden Espinosa, “Lempicka”
- Maleah Joi Moon, “Hell’s Kitchen”
- Kelli O’Hara, “Days of Wine and Roses”
- Maryann Plunkett, “The Notebook”
- Gayle Rankin, “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
- Brody Grant, “The Outsiders”
- Jonathan Groff, “Merrily We Roll Along”
- Dorian Harewood, “The Notebook”
- Brian d’Arcy James, “Days of Wine and Roses”
- Eddie Redmayne, “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
- Quincy Tyler Bernstine, “Doubt: A Parable”
- Juliana Canfield, “Stereophonic”
- Celia Keenan-Bolger, “Mother Play”
- Sarah Pidgeon, “Stereophonic”
- Kara Young, “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
- Will Brill, “Stereophonic”
- Eli Gelb, “Stereophonic”
- Jim Parsons, “Mother Play”
- Tom Pecinka, “Stereophonic”
- Corey Stoll, “Appropriate”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
- Shoshana Bean, “Hell’s Kitchen”
- Amber Iman, “Lempicka”
- Nikki M. James, “Suffs”
- Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer, “Monty Python’s Spamalot”
- Kecia Lewis, “Hell’s Kitchen”
- Lindsay Mendez, “Merrily We Roll Along”
- Bebe Neuwirth, “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
- Roger Bart, “Back to the Future: The Musical”
- Joshua Boone, “The Outsiders”
- Brandon Victor Dixon, “Hell’s Kitchen”
- Sky Lakota-Lynch, “The Outsiders”
- Daniel Radcliffe, “Merrily We Roll Along”
- Steven Skybell, “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
Best Direction of a Play
- Daniel Aukin, “Stereophonic”
- Anne Kauffman, “Mary Jane”
- Kenny Leon, “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
- Lila Neugebauer, “Appropriate”
- Whitney White, “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”
Best Direction of a Musical
- Maria Friedman, “Merrily We Roll Along”
- Michael Greif, “Hell’s Kitchen”
- Leigh Silverman, “Suffs”
- Jessica Stone, “Water for Elephants”
- Danya Taymor, “The Outsiders”
Best Choreography
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Here Lies Love”
- “Illinoise”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Orchestrations
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Illinoise”
- “Merrily We Roll Along”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Book of a Musical
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “The Notebook”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Suffs”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
- “Days of Wine and Roses”
- “Here Lies Love”
- “Stereophonic”
- “Suffs”
- “The Outsiders”
Best Costume Design of a Play
- “Appropriate”
- “An Enemy of the People”
- “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”
- “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Costume Design of a Musical
- “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
- “The Great Gatsby”
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Suffs”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Scenic Design of a Play
- “Appropriate”
- “An Enemy of the People”
- “Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch”
- “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
- “Back to the Future: The Musical”
- “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Here Lies Love”
- “Lempicka”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Lighting Design of a Play
- “Appropriate”
- “An Enemy of the People”
- “Grey House”
- “Prayer for the French Republic”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Lighting Design of a Musical
- “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Illinoise”
- “The Outsiders”
- “Water for Elephants”
Best Sound Design of a Play
- “Appropriate”
- “Grey House”
- “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding”
- “Mary Jane”
- “Stereophonic”
Best Sound Design of a Musical
- “Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club”
- “Hell’s Kitchen”
- “Here Lies Love”
- “Merrily We Roll Along”
- “The Outsiders”
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